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How to Sell Gift Cards Using PatronManager and STS: https://help.pm.leapevent.tech/a/907269
Generally, most gift card sales process through your organization's branded gift card site. If you're selling a gift card in person or over the phone, there are a few different methods, depending on payment method and whether the patron wants to take the gift card home when they purchase it in person.
This article will address how to sell gift cards in each scenario. We'll specifically go over:
- How a patron purchases gift cards online
- How to sell a gift card over the phone
- How to sell a gift card to a patron with a credit card in person...
- If the gift card should be mailed
- If the patron wants to take the gift card home on the same day
- How to sell a gift card with cash/check
Method 1: Patron purchases gift card online
We recommend you steer most gift card sales to your organization's branded LocalGiftCard site, where patrons can do the following:
- Choose between all available gift card options
- Choose additional features, like scheduling an e-gift to be sent at a future date up to 3 months in advance
Ask your web developer to iframe the branded gift card site on your own website so patrons can purchase gift cards intuitively through your website!
Method 2: Patron calls on the phone to purchase a gift card
When a patron calls to purchase a gift card, you can purchase their gift card on your branded site using their credit card information, just as they would if they purchased online as described in Method 1.
Method 3: In person with a credit card
When a patron wants to pay for a gift card with a credit card and wants the gift card to be mailed, you can do as you would on the phone; purchase the gift card through your branded website and process it with their credit card information.
If they want the gift card now, you'll need to do a couple extra steps. First, we'll activate the card in the WebTerminal, then we'll use the "Recharge" function on the branded website to add value to the card.
Grab a gift card from from the stack you probably keep at the box office and follow along!
1. Go to the WebTerminal website
If you need the website link again, here it is:
It's generally a good idea to open the STS Gift Cards WebTerminal tab in a new tab because if you happen to navigate away from it, it'll log you out.
2. Log in to the WebTerminal
- Fill in your WebTerminal username and password
- Verify your humanity
- Click "Log In"
3. Click on the Credit/Activation tab
4. Fill in the gift card number that's printed on the physical card, and set the amount to $0
Don't click "Process" yet! We're not quite done here.
5. Check the "Include cardholder information" box, fill in the cardholder information, and click "Process"
You may be wondering, "Hey, why do I need to give this card a $0 value? Raymond Holt wants to drop some serious coinage on this card!"
Great question! We need to make sure the credit card transaction goes through the branded website so it's recorded correctly. Your finance department will thank you.
Now that we've activated the card, let's go add some real money to it!
6. Click on the App Launcher
7. Search "STS" and click on STS Online Gift Cards
8. Scroll down and click on the "RECHARGE" option
9. Validate the gift card number, and then follow the steps on your branded website to recharge the card
Method 4: In person with cash or check
If a patron comes into the box office and wants to pay cash or check for a gift card, we'll need to do a couple extra steps to accomplish this, as well. First, we'll activate the gift card in the WebTerminal with the patron's desired cash or check amount. Then, use a gift card Ticketable Event and "sell" it to your patron for the same amount in PatronManager. This way, the gift card is accounted for and you know why the money is in your drawer.
We'll cover specifically:
- How to process a physical card the patron wants to take home on the same day
- How to process an e-gift card the patron wants to send to someone other than themselves
Grab a Gift Card from from the stack you probably keep at the box office and follow along!
1. Go to the WebTerminal website
If you need the website link again, here it is:
It's generally a good idea to open the STS Gift Cards WebTerminal tab in a new tab because if you happen to navigate away from it, it'll log you out.
2. Log in to the WebTerminal
- Fill in your WebTerminal username and password
- Verify your humanity,
- Click "Log In"
Now it's time to choose your own adventure. If the patron wants to take their gift card home the same day, follow the physical card instructions. If they want an e-gift, follow the e-gift instructions.
1. Click on the Credit/Activation tab
2. Fill in the gift card number that's printed on the physical card, and set the dollar amount the patron wants to pay
Don't click "Process" yet! We're not quite done here.
3. Check the "Include cardholder information" box, fill in the cardholder information, and click "Process"
Now that we've activated the gift card and recorded the card cash value in the WebTerminal, let's go reflect that value in PatronManager in the next step.
1. Click on the Activate E-Gift tab
2. Fill in the following information
Don't click "Process" yet! We aren't quite done yet.
- Amount: Fill in the cash / check amount the patron wants to pay
- Recipient Name: This is the name of the person receiving the gift
- Recipient Email: This is the email the e-gift will go to
- Sender Name: This is the name of the person purchasing the e-gift
- Sender Email: This is the "from" email on the e-gift.
- Message: Ask the patron if they'd like to send a special message to the gift recipient, too!
3. Check the "Include cardholder information" box, fill in the cardholder information, and click "Process"
Now that we've activated the e-gift and recorded the cash value in the WebTerminal, let's go reflect that value in PatronManager in the next step.
3. Record the transaction in PatronManager
When a patron purchases a gift card with cash or a check, it's important to record that cash or check amount in PatronManager for daily reconciling.
In this step, we'll create a Gift Cards Cash/Check event (if you haven't done so already), and then we'll "sell" the gift card through this event. This tracks cash/check gift card money so you can reconcile your cash drawer more easily at the end of the day. Your finance department will also appreciate you for your due diligence, and that never hurts.
3.1. First, search for the event in Event Inventory
Make sure the event doesn't already exist before you start building a new one. If it does, then great! You can skip ahead.
3.2. If the event doesn't exist yet, go ahead and create it
If you aren't familiar with how to create a Ticketable Event, refer to this help article and follow the General Admission instructions.
As you create the Cash/Check Gift Cards event, take the following considerations into account.
- Instance Date and Sale End Date: Set these fields as far in advance as you'd like. Set the Sale Start Date to today's date.
- Venue: No need to set a venue
- Seating Type: General Admission
- Sale Status: Set this to Private so folks won't see the event for sale online
- Allocation & Price Levels: Create one Allocation and add Price Levels as needed
- Visibility: Set this to Private - we don't want it to be visible online!
3.3. "Sell" the gift card through the Cash/Check Gift Card event
You'll use the Gift Card Cash/Check event in PatronManager to "sell" the gift card. Let's walk through what that process looks like. In this scenario, the cash amount is $100; we'll show you how to record this accurately.
If you want to issue Gift Cards as gifts to reward volunteers, we recommend you activate the Gift Card in WebTerminal just like you would with a cash/check gift card, and then "sell" it through this event in PatronManager it as a comp. This will help you understand later why someone has a gift card of a certain value that was gifted from your own organization.
3.4. On the Pricing screen, select the price level corresponding to the gift card cash/check amount
3.5. Need to waive any fees? Click the "Waive Fees" button, check the fee boxes you want to waive, click "Done"
3.6. Check out the order total and make sure it's the right amount - click "Next"
3.7. Make sure you've added the Contact and set the correct information at the bottom of the screen - click "Next"
Most importantly, the Payment Method needs to either be cash or check, depending on how the patron paid for their gift card!
3.8. Click "Submit Order"
3.9. The money will now show up on your financial reports!
As you can see here, the cash Gift Card amount you recorded in PatronManager appears as a cash transaction on the Daily Sales Report.
